NEWSWIRE

HANSRA STANDS DOWN AS CAPTAIN

Jimmy Hansra has stepped down as captain of Canada's Senior Men's team. Hansra's decision was conveyed to the board and accepted a short time ago.

In a statement Hansra was upbeat about the upcoming tournament and looked to do his part to ensure Canada qualifies for the 2012 T20 Cricket World Cup

"I would like to thank the organization for giving me the opportunity to lead Canada. In my short stay as Captain, I have thoroughly enjoyed the role and have learned a lot in a very short time. It has helped me grow as a cricketer and as an individual. However, looking ahead and putting cricket in front, I believe I need to focus on my game more and I can offer more to Cricket Canada as a player at this moment than a Captain. I am very happy with the organization and I believe we are definitely heading in the right direction. I am looking forward to the upcoming tournament as a player and I am very confident in this team that if we play together, we will qualify for the T20 Cricket World Cup and make Canada proud. Thank you once again to everyone involved for your trust and support throughout."

Hansra assumed the captaincy following the Cricket World Cup from Ashish Bagai. At that tournament Hansra was one of Canada's top performers with the bat and ball.

"Jimmy conveyed to us after the Caribbean T20 tournament his wish to stand down from the captaincy. While we asked him to reconsider we accept his decision and look forward to his future contributions to our organization. Jimmy has been a class act since he joined the program and he carried himself with class throughout his period as captain. We wish him all the best."

Hansra's replacement will be named shortly.

Canada will leave for a tour of Sri Lanka on Saturday prior to the T20 Cricket World Cup Qualifiers which will begin March 13th in UAE.